Monday, February 4, 2013

Seeing Red: Kitchen Upgrades

When I moved in to my new apartment last November, my kitchen counter looked unorganized and boring:

Looking at this picture, it is obvious that the wall is dull and uninspiring. It needs some color! I also needed to get some of my kitchen items off of the counter top. Well, I came up with a solution that would solve both of these problems! Hang the red items on the wall, thus adding color AND making room on the counter top.

You can see in the picture that my cutting board has a hole for hanging, as does the trivet (the round, red object sitting on the counter).

Now that I had an idea, I had to execute it. To accomplish this project I had to get out my drill, screws, and anchors. The wall is plaster, which means the regular hammer/nail combination is pretty daunting. With plaster walls, my dad taught me that using screws and anchors is a good way to secure your item. Plaster tends to chip, and weak nails usually buckle when you try to hammer them in. The screws and anchors I used are similar to this product from Home Depot. 

After a lot of muscle (plaster walls are hard to break into, even with a drill!), I managed to get the cutting board and trivet up on the wall:


Ahh...clean, colorful, and clutterless!

I also received a new utensil holder for Christmas:


My kitchen is looking pretty awesome these days - I even have another wall of goodness to show you. But that will have to wait until another day!

One last thing - I don't know how to organize my spices better so it doesn't look so cluttered. Any ideas?

2 comments:

  1. Man if I had that kitchen I would paint that wall something bold or stencil it! Can you do that in your place?

    Also, I wonder if you could hang your spices on the wall or in a cupboard? Something like this? http://www.amazon.com/SpiceStor-Organizer-Cabinet-Spice-Clips/dp/B005J9FNTK/ref=lp_510156_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1359986796&sr=1-1

    I love the pops of red. That kettle and the utensil holder are my favs!

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  2. Oooo...hanging spices on the inside of a cabinet! What an idea! I hadn't thought of that. I've thought of putting them on the wall, and the obvious place is right above the stove. But, my landlord has restrictions on what you can hang above the oven. I'll have to ask them about the specifics.

    And yes, I can paint. I just have to repaint everything white when I move out. I do want to paint, but I want to wait until the weather is nicer so I can open the windows. Plus, I have to admit I'm slightly scared of painting! What if the color looks terrible once it is on the wall?!

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